08-31-2009, 09:13 AM
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#12 (permalink)
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Base Member
Join Date: Jul 2009
Location: Glenelg, MD
Posts: 146
Drives: 370 Rdstr AT7 BkChry
Rep Power: 15
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Quote:
Originally Posted by tgm
Never use the cell phone while near the pump. It is an electrical fire hazard and could also interfere with the pump meter.
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These wive's tales keep getting passed around the net. The cell phone is not a fire hazard. This tale most likely started by some end-of-the-world type who saw an internet video of a gas station fire. Those fires have all been caused by static electricity sparks (as warned against previously). People start the pump, get back in their cars and rub around on their cloth seats, then get back out and touch the car near the nozzle... if they had grounded themselves at the door before getting near the nozzle, the fire would never start.
The cell phone has zero effect on the pump's meter, either. The cell phone has zero effect on the sensitive electronics of an airplane (despite those wive's tales!). This one most likely started with the people who noticed the auto-debit gas keyfobs (I think Shell and Exxon were big pundits of these type of keyring fobs) were interfering with the security fobs for their cars... if the gas fob was on the same keyring as the car's fob (like what Nissan uses), some cars wouldn't start. The car's security RFID antenna was actually powering both the gas fob and the car's fob, and the return signal from the gas fob was interfering with the car's fob. In addition, the car fobs were (for a short period of time) causing multiple gas charges when brought near the gas fob charge panel on the pump... again, because they were on the same keyring.
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